MEMO

Why write memos?

Memos are useful in situations where e-mails or text messages are not suitable. For example, if you are sending an object, such as a book or a paper that needs to be signed, through internal office mail, you can use a memo as a covering note to explain what the receiver should do.

How to write a memo

Memos should have the following sections and content:

11)     A 'To' section containing the name of the receiver. For informal memos, the receiver's given name; e.g. 'To: Andy' is enough. For more formal memos, use the receiver's full name. If the receiver is in another department, use the full name and the department name.  It is usually not necessary to use Mr., Mrs., Miss or Ms unless the memo is very formal.

22)     A 'From' section containing the name of the sender. For informal memos, the sender's other name; e.g. 'From: Bill' is enough. For more formal memos, use the sender's full name. If the receiver is in another department, use the full name and the department name. It is usually not necessary to use Mr., Mrs., Miss or Ms unless the memo is very formal.

33)     A 'Date' section. To avoid confusion between the British and American date systems, write the month as a word or an abbreviation; e.g. 'January' or 'Jan'.

44)     A Subject Heading. (like Notification of My Resignation)

55)     The message.

Unless the memo is a brief note, a well-organised memo message should contain the following sections:

aa)      Situation - an Introduction or the purpose of the memo

bb)     Problem (optional) - for example: "Since the move to the new office in Kowloon Bay, staff have difficulty in finding a nearby place to buy lunch."

cc)      Solution (optional) - for example: "Providing a microwave oven in the pantry would enable staff to bring in their own lunchboxes and reheat their food."

dd)     Action - this may be the same as the solution, or be the part of the solution that the receiver needs to carry out; e.g. "we would appreciate it if you could authorise up to $3,000"

ee)      Politeness - to avoid the receiver refusing to take the action you want, it is important to end with a polite expression; e.g. "Once again, thank you for your support.", or more informally "Thanks".

6f)     Signature

This is optional.

STRUCTURE OF A MEMO

  

[Company Name]

Memo

To:	[Recipient Name]
From:	[Your Name]
Date:	[Click to select date]
Re:	[Subject]

[Type memo here]

SAMPLE MEMO

To:	Katherine Chu, Regional Manager
From:	Stephen Yu, Sales
Date:	16 January 2015
Subject:	Notification of My Resignation

I am writing to inform you of my intention to resign from G & S Holdings.

I have appreciated very much my four years working for the company. The training has been excellent and I have gained valuable experience working within an efficient and professional team environment. In particular, I have appreciated your personal guidance during these first years of my career.

I feel now that it is time to further develop my knowledge and skills base in a different environment.

I would like to leave, if possible, in a month's time on Saturday, 14 February. This will allow me to complete my current workload. I hope that this suggested arrangement is acceptable to the company.

Once again, thank you for your support.